Celtic have reportedly had a bid rejected for Caen striker Alexandre Mendy, according to a reputable French outlet L'Equipe.
The lowdown: Career so far
The 28-year-old has spent his entire career in France so far, becoming somewhat of an eternal loanee, racking up 54 senior goals in 207 appearances across numerous spells out on loan as well as permanent stints at Bordeaux, Nice and Guingamp.
Mendy arrived at his current club Caen from Bordeaux in 2020 on a free transfer and has since shone for the Normandy based Ligue 2 outfit.
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Now the Guinea-Bissau international could be set to leave for domestic action elsewhere for the first time...
The latest: Bid made
As per reputable French source L'Equipe, Celtic have seen an initial offer of €3million (£1.5million) rejected by Caen.
The report claims that a number of other clubs are vying for the seven-cap ace's signature but it's the Hoops who have made the first move ahead of the summer transfer window.
It's stated that the side currently sitting eighth in the French second tier would negotiate 'in the event of a higher offer' for their talismanic frontman, who was hailed as 'very strong' by former Bordeaux manager Jocelynn Gourvennec.
The verdict: Ange not messing around
This season, Mendy, who can also operate as an attacking midfielder and out wide, has scored 16 times and provided one assist in 30 Ligue 2 outings, all while earning an impressive 7.04 average rating and winning an outstanding 4.7 aerial duels on average per game (Sofascore). To put that in perspective, that's more goals and headers won than Giorgos Giakoumakis.
However, unproven outside of the lower reaches of French football and already 28, upping the current offer would enter the realm of taking a risk with a portion of Ange Postecoglou's summer budget.
Whilst the Bhoys must find suitable recognised centre-forward backup for Giakoumakis and Kyogo Furuhashi, the Greek-Australian boss has already proven to be a shrewd operator in the transfer market, so upping the bid on a player with plenty of unknowns could be a questionable decision.
Either way, to see the boss and club chiefs acting so decisively with summer targets is a positive, giving supporters hope that whatever the result of these talks, plans for the transfer window are already in action.
In other news, Frank McAvennie is in awe of one Celtic player’s development. Find out who it is here.